If you are searching for a safari-style camp within an hour of Nairobi city, then Swara Acacia Lodge is your answer. Perched in a sweet spot on the Athi Plains, Swara offers family-friendly, safari fun at a fraction of the price you usually pay for a weekend break from Nairobi.
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Visit Swara Acacia Lodge for a weekend break from Nairobi. 13 thatched banda’s and a campground sit within the vast Swara Plains conservancy in which you can cycle, fish, bird watch and go on game drives. A full board package offers three yummy meals a day at a price that won’t break the bank.
I’ve wanted to try Swara Acacia Lodge for years, after all, it ticks a lot of boxes; it’s an hour from Nairobi, family-friendly, reasonably priced and outdoorsy. Swara makes for an easy Nairobi weekend getaway – no packing of tents, breaking of banks or driving for hours. Read on to learn about Swara Acacia Lodge in Nairobi and the Swara Plains Conservancy
Game drives at Swara Plains Conservancy
Swara Acacia Lodge Athi River is set in the Kapiti grasslands, on the Swara/Athi Plains, within a 20,000-acre private wildlife conservancy. On our arrival in mid-January, the plains stretched to the horizon, and the summer sun had burned the grasses to caramel and ash. Yellow acacia trees offered the animals little shelter and the occasional dam was spotted with footprints from antelope, zebra, giraffe and hyena. The plains shimmered with heat that only the colours of superb starlings, yellow-necked giraffes or the white bottoms of impala broke up.
Swara Acacia Lodge appears in a forest of mustard dipped acacia trees. A Makuti roofed reception greets us with its small shop and cooling drinks. Through the other side, banda’s circled a grassy area with replete with climbing frames and swings. A quick wander around the Nairobi lodge revealed a swimming pool, dartboard, pool and Ping-Pong tables. Small ponds filled with catfish and frogs twinkled through islands of foliage. As the children leap on their bikes and charge around the paths that meander through the lodge, the adults are drawn inexorably towards the fully stocked bar and promise of cold rose.
Accommodation at Swara Acacia Lodge
Our bags are carried to the banda’s which are quite wonderful considering the price. We are in the family banda, two en suite bedrooms separated by a lounge. The ceilings are high, walls are stone, art colours the walls and every person in our group agrees that the mattresses are comfier than our own at home. This safari camp in Nairobi does a great job of keeping things cheap whilst not scrimping on the essentials.
Sheets are soft, white and clean, posh shower gel in the bathroom, desks and rugs throughout the house. The banda’s are basic but clean, comfortable, and serene, one of the nicest little huts I have stayed in.
Swara Plains Conservancy
We spend the afternoon playing pool and swimming whilst the children gallop around, in their element. The camp is almost empty and the pool and bar are ours, and no one seems to mind about the feral children. As the heat of the day passes, we rent bikes from the camp (500 bob/ $5) per bike and take the kids on a cycle through the conservancy. We race alongside herds of wildebeest, spot giraffe, zebra, impala, vulture, baboons and ostrich. There are cheetah, hyena, honey badger and leopard here but they are rarely seen and the absence of buffalo, lion and rhino here means that riding is fairly safe. We see several cycling groups come back to the camp. It seems Swara Plains Conservancy is a cycling hotspot in Nairobi. Book cycling trips with a local tour guide here.
Restaurant at Swara Acacia Lodge
As night falls, we eat our second meal of the day. Lunch was a la carte; I had whole baked tilapia with a sweet smoky tomato sauce, my friends ate curry and lamb tagine whilst the children feasted on chicken escalope. In the evening the food was buffet style, nyama choma, with all the sides or burgers made to order, and for breakfast we had continental options alongside a buffet of cooked food. It’s good home cooking. more enjoyed by some than others. The black forest gateaux was the finest I’ve eaten but the Nyama Choma a little tough. Service was endearingly friendly but a little inefficient: tea took 20 minutes, eggs never appeared.
At night we sat by the sunken firepit and listen to the hyenas call to each other and a zebra yips in distress. We gaze into the flames or up at the stars, sup Amarula and feel a million miles away from Nairobi.
In the morning the Ngong Hills that signal home to me are clearly visible, we aren’t so far from home after all. It’s Nairobi but it doesn’t feel like it, perhaps it’s the Nairobi of yesteryear, before the buildings and the traffic and the chaos.
The camping facilities at Swara Acacia Lodge are in a large field situated away from the camp (not fenced) with a long drop toilet and space to make a fire. Camping spots go for 4000 KSH / 40 USD per tent per night but you are allowed to use all the lodges facilities and pay for meals at the bar and restaurant. A very good option for campsites near Nairobi.
Swara Acacia Lodge Athi River
The Swara Plains Wildlife Conservancy boasts 100 km of trails that lead to over 3,000 game animals, 300 bird species and 8 dams.
You have exclusive access to the wildlife sanctuary for bird watching, nature walks, cycling, fishing and game drives.
Swara Acacia Lodge Athi River will organize day-and-night safari drives, archery, yoga, safari bike rentals and safari hikes.
There are 23 ensuite rooms including, 1 garden room suite and 2 family 2-bedroom suites.
The camp has meeting rooms for business travellers and they provide wedding services.
The bar is fully stocked but you are allowed to bring your own wine – corkage fee is 500 KSH / 5 USD per bottle.
Swara Acacia Lodge rates
A family room is 19,000 KSH / 190 USD a night (FULL BOARD)
For a couple, rooms start at 12,000 KSH / 120 USD (FULL BOARD)
Campsite 4,000 KSH/ 40 USD per tent per night.
Swara Acacia Lodge Directions
For directions to Swara Acacia Lodge don’t trust Google Maps who sends you on a wild goose chase to nowhereville. Follow these directions:
From Nairobi drive down the Mombasa road through Athi River to Lukenya on your left and take the first U-turn after Brava Food Industries to turn back towards Nairobi and JUST 500m after this U-turn, turn left off the Mombasa road at the Small World Country Club, Swara Acacia signed exit. Turn left on to the road that takes you down the boundary of Small World car park and drive for 1 km on this road until you come to the gates of the Conservancy. Follow the signs to Swara which is a further 2km.
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